Advanced and sustainable coatings for high performance textiles

This symposium will present the recent advances in high-performance/protective coatings, based on sustainable hybrid materials, featuring implemented (multi)functional properties (i.e. antibacterial, hydrophobic, flame retardant, sensing, self-cleaning) for the development of technical/high-performance textiles.

Scope:

The continuous search for improved textile fabrics in various industrial sectors requires the employment of innovative and sustainable materials, featuring advanced, smart and implemented characteristics, and still providing to end users the typical textiles safe and comfortable behavior. In order to fulfill the desired technical requirements, textile fabrics must be treated with functional coatings, bearing opportune smart and sustainable nanomaterials, as embedded in hybrid or blended polymeric matrices. As a result, the researchers are constantly devoted to take advantage of the most recent nanotechnological solutions with the aim to grow beneficial everyday life standards, even ensuring the eco-sustainability issue related to the textiles production.

As a matter of fact, the circular design of textiles can ensure superior quality, longer life, better use of materials and better options for reuse and recycling of fabrics, finishes and upholstery. In particular, the non-use of hazardous chemicals or carbon-based substances, the reduction of toxic emissions and of microplastics released at all stages of the life cycle must be considered in the design of textile products, for public health protection, environmental conservation and reduction of waste of primary resources.

The most useful improved surface properties should be mentioned, such as:

• Water repellency and self-cleaning, very appealing technologies, owing to their strong commercial potential and capacity to cut cleaning labor expenses.
• UV-absorption, in order to protect a product from UV-light breakdown. or someone or something from UV-light;
• Mechanical characteristics improvement, thus increasing the corrosion/wear resistance of the material, and consequently resulting in a longer life and lower costs.
• Antibacterial and antifouling behavior, preventing bacterial development due to textiles organic origin.
• Flame retardancy, against the well-known easiness of textile fabrics combustion.

Hot topics to be covered by the symposium:

Technical textiles

• Environmentally friendly functional finishings
• Bio-based UV absorber
• Abrasion-resistance enhancement
• Flame retardant treatments for textiles

Hybrid and composite-based coatings

• Hybrid organic-inorganic coatings
• Nanostructured textile coatings
• Functional nanofillers and crosslinkers

Multifunctional textiles finishing

• Bio-based and metal-free antimicrobial finishes
• Textile finishings for sportwear, fitness clothing and active/workwear
• Water repellent polymeric coatings

Self-cleaning hybrid fabrics

• Hydrophobic and hydrophilic finishings
• Self-cleaning fibers
• Biomimetic coatings

Joint session on Electronic and Sustainable Textiles
(contributed chairs: Elvira Maria Correia Fortunato and Rodrigo Martins)
in conjunction with Symposium “Smart textiles for human well-being”

• Electronic textiles (E-textiles)
• Optical fibers (O-Textiles)
• Wearable energy harvesting concept
• Metal-polymer or polymer-polymer connections (sensor basic textile connections)
• Textile-based transducers

• Sustainable textiles
• Circular textile coatings management
• Eco-friendly functional additives
• Sustainability, Circularity and Traceability in Textiles
• Bio-based formulations, polymers and textiles
• Degradability conditions